During a first meeting to launch The Gambia’s Livestock Master Plan, Karl Rich, principal scientist in the Policies, Institutions, and Livelihoods Program of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), and Njie Mamud, program director of SRPEP, both pointed to an increasing demand for animal-source foods (milk, meat and eggs) locally and internationally that The Gambia was as yet unable to supply due to challenges in the country’s livestock production and feed systems, fragmentation of its livestock value chains and poor infrastructure. Rich argued that by working with many diverse stakeholders to implement its new livestock master plan, The Gambia will be able to help its smallholder farmers transform their largely subsistence livestock systems into a profitable and thriving livestock sector. Continue reading →